Peter Nägele, Regional General Counsel of Siemens AG, explains how his team supports growth and integrity through governance and why personality is as important as good grades when hiring young talent.
 ASIAN-MENA COUNSEL: How did your career lead you to your current role with Siemens? What is the nature and scope of your role? Peter Nägele: I joined Siemens in 2009 after being a lawyer in private practice for more than 20 years. Since the early stages of my career, I have focused on advising clients, in capital markets transactions and issue management. Siemens became a client when I advised the company on the carve-out and subsequent IPOs of two significant business divisions, now known as Infineon and Epcos. I also acted as the law firm’s relationship partner for Siemens for many years. Not an easy job, I have to admit: Siemens always had great lawyers who really knew their business, and it was quite a challenge to become their and their managers’ trusted business adviser. When the headhunter called and asked whether I was interested in talking about an in-house function, I was hesitant at first. But the opportunity at Siemens was just too good to miss. Under the leadership of managing board member and General Counsel Peter Y. Solmssen, Siemens had started one year earlier to transform the legal function from a service provider to a true business partner and to install an effective compliance function. I had always enjoyed working side-by-side with top executives, and during my tenure as co-managing partner of the law firm, I had learned what it means to take business decisions and to not merely advise others on them. I was initially appointed General Counsel for energy, then the company’s second biggest sector with revenues of some EUR 25 billion and more than 80,000 employees. One year later, I was given the opportunity to also serve as General Counsel for the Asia Pacific region. My role is to support and strengthen the local legal teams and to connect them to HQ and the international business units. Close collaboration is key, and for that you need to know each other personally, not only from office meetings. We foster a culture where people enjoy supporting each other and contributing to the success of others. We have good and highly motivated lawyers and contract managers in almost every country of the region, and although the challenges are enormous in light of the big project and product business we are doing, I’m quite relaxed. It’s a great job! AMC: What qualities does Siemens look for in external counsel? Are there any criteria followed in choosing suitable partners? AMC: When hiring for your in-house team, which candidates’ qualities would be of most value? AMC: How has the in-house team responded to any issues and challenges that have arisen for Siemens in recent years? |
